


Days in Good Company

by one_go_alone



Series: Nights and Days [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Business, Businessman Itachi, Businessmen, Chemistry - freeform, Hand Jobs, Light Angst, Multi, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Original Female Character, POV Original Male Character, Past Relationship(s), Relationship(s), Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-11
Updated: 2017-09-20
Packaged: 2018-12-13 23:22:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 18,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11770593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/one_go_alone/pseuds/one_go_alone
Summary: Itachi spent six years keeping his nights a secret...but now he can spend all the rest of his days in good company.





	1. Rebecca

**Author's Note:**

> ("I'll put up the sequel on AO3 soon," she says. It hasn't...quite been two years yet? >.>;;;)
> 
> This was originally posted on Livejournal in (dear god) 2006. I've cleaned up wording and formatting here and there, but otherwise it's unchanged. 
> 
> This fic will make a great deal more sense if you read _Nights in White Satin_ first.

Rebecca Nayland sighed quietly as her manager headed back to his office, and added yet another item to the list that she secretly called ‘Things To Be Done For All The Idiots In This Place Who Couldn’t Organize Their Way Out Of A Paper Bag, Into Which Paper Bag They Should All Be Confined For Wasting So Much Of My Time.’ 

On her computer screen and desk, of course, it was merely labeled ‘To Do.’ 

Slipping this latest mess of a folder into its proper place, priority-wise, in the stack of similar folders that was threatening to take over the right side of her desk, she straightened her back and grimly returned to work. Although most of the time she honestly enjoyed her work as a secretary, she wished that fewer of her co-workers and bosses were so idiotic. Honestly, she wasn’t sure how this company kept running, sometimes. 

_Enough of that,_ she chided herself. _There are intelligent people here too. They just all happen to work in other departments._ Another quick shake of her head and she grabbed another file off the top of her ‘To Do’ stack, determined to have at least half of that stack on the ‘Done’ side of her desk by the end of the day. 

Half an hour later, that determination was flagging slightly. 

_Argh! Is it too much to ask for the man to make at least a slight effort towards having legible handwriting?_ She scowled down at the letter, trying to make out a particularly obscure set of squiggles, and was just about to give up on the whole thing when a deep, quiet voice called her attention out to the far side of her desk. 

“Pardon me, but do you have a moment, Miss…Nayland?”

Rebecca looked up, and was glad that her professional training had included keeping her reactions under control.

 _Otherwise, I’d be gaping rather badly right now,_ she admitted to herself. _Hot **damn**!_

The man standing in front of her had smooth, pale skin, a pair of deep black eyes, and long black hair pulled into a low ponytail. Some hair (which looked thick and silky even from across the desk and under bad office lighting) escaped from the hair-tie to hang loose around his thin, sculptured face. He wore his dark suit like a second skin, with everything perfectly in place, from the neat knot on his tie down to the polished tips of his shoes.

 _That is probably the best looking man I have seen in a long time,_ Rebecca thought, keeping her expression polite and blank. _He must be new, otherwise I’d certainly have remembered seeing him around before now!_

“Yes,” she replied, and it wasn’t quite a lie. “What can I help you with, Mr.…?”

“Aoru,” he replied to her query. “Itachi Aoru.”

_Ah, that’s right. I did hear that old Ben had hired a new analyst to take his place under Mr. Cochran before he quit. Huh._

“I realize that you are busy, Miss Nayland, but I was told that you were the best person to ask for arranging more complicated copies.” He held another of the ubiquitous tan folders across the desk to her, and she took it, concealing her distaste for the things. “I would normally do it myself, but Mr. Cochran has called another meeting, and this really must be done before the end of the day.”

His voice was carefully neutral, but Rebecca sensed an underlying annoyance against their mutual boss that struck a responsive chord in her, as did the nearly-apologetic tone of his request.

 _And someone must have thought well enough of him to let him know that I’m the secretary to come to,_ she noted. That told her a lot, too. A quick scan of his almost too-beautiful face revealed other things, now that she looked past the surface. He seemed rather tired, although he hid it well. There were light shadows under his dark eyes, and he held himself too stiffly. _Hmm._

“I’ll see what I can do, Mr. Aoru,” she said, and gave him a quick but genuine smile. 

Some of the tension seemed to drop away from his face, and though he didn’t quite smile in return, she could tell that he was relieved. “Many thanks, Miss Nayland.”

He turned and walked off, and Rebecca watched him until he rounded the corner of a cubicle and vanished. Then she sighed and opened the folder he had given her, wondering how long it would take to get everything organized enough to make the copies he was asking for…

…only to blink in shock and pleasure when she looked at the contents.

Everything was stacked quite neatly, with both the writing and all of the charts included, paper-clipped into orderly bunches. He’d even left her with a couple of brief sticky notes explaining precisely how he wanted the pages to look and…and…

His handwriting was perfectly legible. 

For a long moment, Rebecca could only sit there contemplating the wondrous beauty of it all, before finally shaking herself and properly reading his instructions. 

It took her three minutes to get everything laid out the way he wanted and another two to make the correct number of copies, plus a couple extra just in case. Another minute to paper-clip them together, and with barely more than five minutes gone she had set the whole folder off to the ‘Done’ side of her desk. Leaving her with a little extra time to sit back again and wonder at a man who actually understood how to do things efficiently. And thoughtfully. He had obviously gone to no little effort to make sure that her part was as easy as possible. No papers stacked higgledy-piggledy, all out of order. No making her look up the necessary charts or figures. No illegible shorthand to decipher. No making her guess as to the layout he wanted which might or might not turn out to be correct, so that she might or might not have to do the whole thing over again. No, none of that. 

She remembered that…and also remembered the weariness in his eyes, and decided that he was worthy to receive some of her special treatment. Normally it took months for anyone to rate that, but for this man (Itachi, he had said his name was) he had already earned a _lot_ of points in her good book. 

So, two hours later (and thirty minutes after it was supposed to end; Rebecca thought that she was getting to know Mr. Cochran’s habits a bit too well) the meeting to which Itachi had been summoned got out, and he returned to her desk six minutes after that, making her estimate of five minutes off by only one. 

He accepted the folder from her with a grateful nod, the weariness and frustration now even more apparent in his eyes, and was about to turn and go back to his own desk when she stopped him. 

“One more thing, Mr. Aoru, if you don’t mind the liberty,” she said, and slid the steaming mug of coffee across the desk to him. 

This was no ordinary mug of office coffee. This was _her_ coffee, that she brewed herself with real, freshly-ground coffee beans, and that almost no one else had earned the privilege of drinking, though its existence was legendary throughout the lower levels of employees and management in the office. 

The guarded look on his face dropped instantly to reveal a look saying something along the lines of ‘You are a GODDESS,’ as Itachi turned back and picked up the mug carefully. He took one sip and let his eyes slip closed, sighing quietly in pleasure and appreciation. 

Then he opened his eyes and looked at her again, but this time as if he were really _seeing_ her.

Rebecca discovered that those midnight eyes could be rather disconcerting when leveled so intently at you for any significant length of time. He held her with that gaze, this one more along the lines of ‘Let me take you apart and see how you work.’ It wasn’t out of attraction, either, for which one part of her sighed regretfully, and another, more judicious part was glad. It was the most intriguing mix of curiosity and astute assessment that she’d ever received from anyone, and found her opinion of the man going up by another couple of notches. 

“Thank you for the coffee, and the files, Miss Nayland,” he said quietly after a long moment. Rebecca, not fully trusting her voice, merely nodded, and managed a small smile for him. That got her another brief, assessing look, and then a respectful nod before he turned and walked off. 

Leaving Rebecca to wonder who the hell he was and what the hell had just happened. 

_Definitely have to keep an eye on that one. I don’t think I’ve met anyone so interesting in a long time! I wonder what he’s doing here, at Akatsuki Enterprises, as a low-level analyst?_

$$$

She had more cause to wonder this almost every time she saw him after their first meeting. His intelligence, his elegant bearing, his obvious skill with running a business…none of it fit with where he currently was. The more Rebecca saw of him, the surer of this she was; which did not, of course, get her any closer to an answer to this puzzle named Itachi Aoru. 

He came to her on a fairly regular basis after that, usually after those meetings that were especially useless and boring, often with something for her to do, but occasionally just to stop by and talk for a minute or two. She got good at judging when he would come, and so could almost always have a mug of coffee ready for him. She suspected that the coffee was the main reason he came by, especially when he didn’t have anything for her to do, but their conversation was also interesting, and she began to look forward to his visits more and more. 

Rebecca did notice when he started to take on more work than was supposed to be his responsibility, about a month after she met him (which was two months after he had been hired). 

The first thing she noticed was that she got fewer and fewer files from Mr. Cochran, and although she certainly didn’t mind having to deal with his horrific hand-writing less, it was odd, because she didn’t think the amount of work he was supposed to be doing could have diminished this much, this quickly. 

Then, one day, Itachi showed up at her desk unexpectedly, looking particularly tired, with one of his neat, legible reports for her to put together. She took it without much thought, smiling and offering to make him some coffee. 

He hesitated for a moment, but then sighed and accepted. He didn’t seem in a mood to talk this time, so she merely went back to her typing while the coffee brewed. When it was done, he took the cup with a brief thanks and hurried away. She stared after him thoughtfully, then finished the letter she was currently working on before pulling out the file he had given her.

And proceeded to blink at the contents in confusion, because she knew that this particular report was one that Mr. Cochran was supposed to be taking care of, so why would Itachi-

Rebecca narrowed her eyes at the file for its implications, then got to work on it so that it would be done as quickly as possible for him. 

This happened a couple more times over the next week, and when he came to her for the fourth time with something that had, in the past, been their boss’s job, she took it and, without looking at him, asked politely, “Would you like me to take care of the Snyder case and monthly department holdings report for you as well, Mr. Aoru?”

“No, thank you, Miss Nayland, I can-” He stopped abruptly, eyes snapping to meet hers sharply. “How did you know that I was working on those, Miss Nayland?” His voice had gotten very quiet.

“An educated guess, Mr. Aoru,” she replied calmly. “Several of these files you have been bringing me are things that Mr. Cochran is supposed to be doing, and you have been looking more tired of late. It wasn’t hard to deduce that you are taking on other work of his as well, even on top of your own.” Now it was her turn to look at him sharply, and she lowered her voice. “He thinks that he’s pulling something over on you, doesn’t he? Getting the new guy to do his work for him?”

Onyx eyes held her green ones for a long time, before Itachi finally replied in an even softer voice, “Yes. That is what he thinks.” 

Rebecca wasn’t sure whether to shiver at those secretive, calculating eyes, or smile at him. 

All secrets and calculation were gone in a flash the instant she slid the now-familiar mug of coffee across the desk to him, replaced by a grateful longing that was nearly worshipful. 

She smiled at him. 

He looked at her sharply once more as he blew on the drink to cool it, then gave her a brief, secretive smirk and a nod before turning and walking away. 

_Well…I just hope he knows what he’s doing,_ she thought, shaking her head almost fondly and turning back to her computer. The brief memory of those dark eyes, sharp as a knife blade and piercing through her as though he could read all of her deepest secrets passed through her mind and made her pause again.

 _No. He knows **exactly** what he’s doing._ Holding off both a shiver and a smile, she got back to work.

$$$

 

Their next unusual encounter took place two weeks after that, when work-loads throughout Akatsuki Enterprises picked up. There was a slight increase in the reports she was receiving from Mr. Cochran, but not nearly as much as she was expecting. Which meant, of course, that Itachi was taking on even more work. She was being flooded with assignments from every which way herself, though, so at first she couldn’t find the time to go to him and offer help, and he didn’t make any of his usual appearances at her desk. 

On Thursday she decided to stay late and just get some of the growing mountain of files done and over with. At last, just after midnight, the pile was three-quarters diminished, her eyes were truly beginning to droop, and she decided that that was enough. The rest could be taken care of tomorrow. 

Everyone else (in this department, at least) had long since left, so most of the huge room was dark, except for the pool of light around her own desk. Thinking that she should check and make sure all the offices were locked before she left, she set off down a row of dark cubicles. 

Except…she wasn’t the _only_ one left. She had just finished checking the last of the doors, when a mostly-obscured light in a corner cubicle caught her eye.

_Who on earth…? At this hour?_

Though her steps had been quiet, he must have heard her coming, because his dark eyes had already swung around to meet hers when she stepped into the opening in the cubicle wall.

“Mr. Aoru? It’s awfully late,” she said, concerned. He looked tired, but not as though he were about to fall asleep, which probably meant that he was intending to stay for some time yet.

“I know,” he replied quietly. 

“Shouldn’t you be getting home? Or at least call?” She asked, realizing abruptly that she had no idea where he lived or whether he lived alone or not. 

“I called,” he said, answering both her spoken and unspoken questions. A flash of blue in the lamplight drew her eyes down to his left hand, where a small sapphire set in a plain silver ring was glinting on his ring finger. 

_Huh. Not exactly what one would call a wedding band, but…_ She pushed the thought away. It wasn’t any of her business. “All right, Mr. Aoru.” She hesitated. She was exhausted and really needed to get home, but at the same time she hated to leave him here alone…

“Go on, Miss Nayland. I’ll be fine.”

She grimaced at him, and sighed. “At least let me make you a cup of coffee before I go?” 

He struggled with himself for approximately a second and a half before breaking down and giving her a genuine, if tired, smile. “I would appreciate that a great deal, Miss Nayland.”

She smiled back, relieved, and went back to her own desk quickly, not letting herself wonder too much how many nights he had been doing this. Returning a little while later she found him hard at work once again, though he did spare her a thankful glance for the steaming mug she handed him, and a soft, “Good night, Miss Nayland.”

“Good night, Mr. Aoru,” she replied, and then left without looking back. She wasn’t his mother to nag at him for staying up late, and he would hopefully be sensible enough to know when to stop. 

_Still…I wonder what it is he’s trying to accomplish?_

$$$

Somehow they all got through the rush, just like they always had (at least, they always had in Rebecca’s memory), and even Itachi had gotten all of his work done, though she didn’t like to think how many nights he had stayed late, or for how long. After the night she had discovered him here, she had taken to leaving him with a mug or sometimes thermos of coffee before she left in the evenings, which he always accepted gratefully, and with a quiet reassurance that she wasn’t to worry over him. As soon as the rush had ended, he had begun to look less tired, fortunately, so she knew that he had started getting more sleep as soon as was possible for him, and accepted that that was as good as it was going to get. 

But when everyone was just beginning to get used to normal workloads again, whispers from higher up of potential “staffing rearrangements” (lay-offs and promotions, Rebecca translated) began to trickle down to them. 

Rebecca wasn’t too worried for herself; she was a good secretary, and although she most likely wouldn’t be promoted, she had little chance of being laid-off either. For now, that was good enough, and if she sometimes wished for a job that was slightly less boring and repetitious, she was at least getting a decent paycheck. 

Others, however, were slightly more ambitious. Everyone was talking about it (quietly, of course), wondering who would lose and who would gain in the upcoming “rearrangements.” One of the few people aside from herself who wasn’t talking, and indeed hardly seemed to notice the talk at all, was Itachi Aoru. 

Or so she thought. 

One morning, nearly four months after he had joined the company, he came to her desk unexpectedly and empty-handed. 

He came up so quietly that she didn’t even notice he was standing there for nearly two minutes while she attempted to decipher yet another of Mr. Cochran’s illegible letters and tried not to mutter to herself about it.

“Oh! Mr. Aoru, pardon me. Feel free to catch my attention if I don’t notice you,” she said apologetically when she finally looked up and noticed him standing next to her desk. “Do you need something?”

He looked at her silently for a long moment, one of those scrutinizing looks that continued to catch her curiosity, before finally replying. “Yes. I was going to go out for lunch today, and was wondering if you might care to join me, Miss Nayland.”

She blinked at him in astonishment, then pulled up her schedule. “I…don’t believe there’s anything I need to be here for during that time. Any particular reason?”

“Yes.” He gave her a satisfied nod and turned to go back to his cubicle. “I will meet you here at eleven forty five, then.” 

Rebecca could only stare after him, and it took her several seconds after he had disappeared to realize that he hadn’t told her what the reason for his invitation was. Rolling her eyes and sighing at his continued mysteriousness, she turned back to her work, and tried not to check the clock too much.

At eleven forty five precisely, just as she was rising and pulling on her jacket, he appeared from around the corner in his ever-impeccable business suit and looking expectant. Leaving a quick note that she would be back in an hour or so on the front of her desk, Rebecca grabbed her purse and followed him out of the building. 

His car was new, dark blue, of a good but modestly-priced make, and told her almost nothing about him except that it did seem to fit with what she already knew of his personality. He drove them a little ways further into town to a small, out-of-the-way Italian restaurant, and had still not said anything. 

After they were inside and had ordered, though, Rebecca’s curiosity had gotten the better of her, and she couldn’t help asking her earlier question again. 

“You said that you have a reason for inviting me out to lunch, Mr. Aoru?” 

His dark eyes held hers as he nodded slowly. “Yes. Partly, it is a ‘thank-you’ for all of the help you have given me over the past couple of months.” He paused to sip his water, seeming to think over what he wanted to say next. “And partly it is because I have a…business proposition to discuss with you that I did not wish to talk about in the office.”

“I see,” Rebecca said, carefully, sipping her own water and watching him. “And this proposition is…?”

He gave her a hint of a smirk, pausing as their waiter returned with their food. “I am an ambitious man, Miss Nayland, and I appreciate others who are also talented and intelligent. I have certain plans in regards to our place of employment, which is why I have been taking on so much extra work, as I’m sure you’ve been wondering. However, I’m going to need a good secretary, someone who will get things done efficiently and on time, someone who knows me, trusts me, and someone whom I can trust. You fit all of these criteria rather neatly, Miss Nayland. My proposition, therefore, is this: stick with me.”

Rebecca blinked at him, not quite sure she was hearing him right, then slowly began to smile. “No matter what, Mr. Aoru?”

“No matter what.” 

“And this…plan of yours; where is it that you are looking to go?” She knew she shouldn’t get too excited about what he was hinting at, but it was hard. It would be so much fun to work for him! Not to mention that it would be much easier to look after him and make sure he didn’t overwork himself that way – he was too young and talented to risk burning himself out now.

“Well,” he admitted quietly, looking down at his pasta, “I have made myself a promise to be the president of my own company within the next…year and eight months or so.” He looked back up at her through long, dark lashes, eyes calculating again. “I won’t lie to you, Miss Nayland, there’s a risk involved…but I think you’ll find it worth your while.”

“It wouldn’t be boring…” she whispered, almost involuntarily, caught in his eyes as he raised his head again. 

“No, it wouldn’t. You wouldn’t be bored, wouldn’t be frustrated by a lazy, idiotic boss. You’d have the time and opportunity to expand your own knowledge and skills, as well as to help this business truly grow.” His voice was low and enticing, his eyes bright with concealed excitement.

Rebecca wasn’t sure quite what she was getting herself into, but… “You really can do this, can’t you? I don’t think anyone else could, but _you…_ ” She knew that her own green eyes were wide as she stared back at him, her voice still a whisper.

“Yes, I can.” 

Deciding that if this was what it felt like to sell your soul to the Devil, then at least she’d go to Hell happy, Rebecca took a deep breath and slowly held out her hand to him across the table.

“I don’t know you, really…don’t know anything about you, but…even so….” She closed her eyes when he grasped her offered hand, and finally let her excitement out in a smile. “I accept your proposition, Mr. Aoru. Wherever you go, I’ll stay with you as your secretary.”

Though his face remained mostly calm, Itachi’s dark eyes were eager, and that smirk was probably worthy of the Devil himself. Still…she did trust him (a startling realization), and that was enough. 

They ate in silence for awhile then, before Itachi finished off his water and looked up at her.

“Now, Miss Nayland, it’s about time for us to be getting back,” he said, and rose. She rose too, and slid her professional mask back into place, though she could tell that it didn’t entirely conceal her excitement.

“Yes, sir!” 

“And besides,” he murmured to her when they got back to her desk, just before he disappeared again, “you make the best coffee that I’ve ever had in my _life_.” 

That made her laugh, and she shooed him off. 

_Well,_ she thought, sitting down at her computer and picking up the files that had been left on her desk in her absence, _life is about to get a whole lot more interesting!_

$$$

It came as a surprise to almost no one (except perhaps Mr. Cochran himself) when he was one of the managers let go in the new “rearrangements.” It had been noted by more people than just Rebecca Nayland that he was no longer doing all of the work that he was supposed to, and he hadn’t ever been that good a manager to begin with. 

What did come as a surprise to almost everyone was that Itachi Aoru was the one chosen to take Mr. Cochran’s place. He had done a remarkably good job of keeping a secret the fact that he was the one doing all of Mr. Cochran’s work as well as his own, and somehow managed to do it all well. Much better than Mr. Cochran ever had, certainly.

Still, Mr. Cochran’s boss hadn’t taken too long to figure out where his subordinate’s missing work was going once he started looking into it, and was so impressed he decided that Itachi might as well just have the job. 

Rebecca, while feigning surprise along with everyone else at the announcement, secretly smiled to herself. 

She reported to Itachi’s new office the next morning with a professionally polite expression and laughing eyes.

“Instructions, sir?” 

Itachi looked up at her with a pleased smirk. “If you would read this over for me, Miss Nayland,” he handed her an already-typed report, “and type up this report, that should be all for now. That second one is part of the Bryant Company analysis and should go out tomorrow.”

“Yes sir. The Bryant case was in three parts, I believe?”

He nodded, pleased. “Yes. I’ll have the third part finished in about twenty more minutes.”

“Very good, sir. I’d be happy to take that later as well.”

“We shall see,” he nodded (which Rebecca interpreted as “Only if I don’t have time”), paused, and couldn’t quite hide a hopeful look. “And…perhaps a cup of coffee?”

Rebecca grinned. “Of course, sir. I’ll bring it right in, then get to work on these.”

“Thank you, Miss Nayland.”

$$$

And thus it went.

Three months later, Itachi was offered another promotion, which he accepted on the condition that Rebecca remain with him as his secretary. The request, though odd, was not denied, and so Rebecca moved with him to their new offices, two floors up and on the other side of the building (and she had to admit that the change of scene was welcome).

The more she worked with him, the more Rebecca could only reaffirm her original estimate; Itachi Aoru was quite an extraordinary businessman, and only seemed to do better the higher up he moved.

And she was getting to know him better on a personal level as well. It was a slow process, of course, as most of their time was taken up with business matters and she was too polite to pry into things that she didn’t really need to know. But there were things to learn about him even from their day to day interactions.

He was quiet. That one was rather obvious, she admitted, but it had taken a little while for it to sink in fully. He rarely spoke beyond what was necessary, but it was more than that. He didn’t talk to himself, never whistled or hummed, and it was rare for her to come into his office and find music playing. He even moved quietly. It sometimes seemed to her as though he spoke to her less and less as time went on; often she could read his moods and guess at what he wanted without him having to tell her much at all. It had been a disconcerting realization at first, until she had slowly come to the conclusion that he liked it better that way.

 _Besides,_ she thought, _if we can understand each other anyway, then what does it matter if we’re actually talking or not?_

Four months in this position and then they were moving up again, this time skipping a couple levels of management in between. 

Ambitious and intelligent, definitely. Not only could he do his own work with sometimes-astonishing skill and efficiency, but he was also good at organizing and inspiring the people under him to give him their best efforts too. He had an aloof kind of charisma that almost anyone who worked with or under him experienced. 

He was anti-social. Rebecca didn’t often think of it that way, of course, because she was someone whose company he didn’t mind, but it was true. Although he was perfectly willing to interact with people on matters work-related, if it became too personal he found a way to end the conversation as quickly as possible.

Rebecca had once come up to his partly-open office door, quietly because he had been in the middle of a meeting with a manager from another department and she wasn’t sure whether or not they were done yet. Hearing voices, she had been about to leave when she actually caught the tone of Itachi’s voice and paused, frowning. She hadn’t heard him sound so stiff in a long time…

“Is that everything, Miss Robinson?”

“Well,” said a female voice, dropping into a suggestive tone, “that’s all of _business_ , Mr. Aoru. But there might be…other things we could discuss.”

“If it isn’t business, Miss Robinson, then our meeting is over.” Itachi’s voice was very cold. 

“Of course, if you’d rather discuss it elsewhere,” she amended quickly, “I’d be happy to accommodate. I’m free anytime….”

“That will be all, Miss Robinson.” ‘Cold’ had dropped to ‘frigid,’ and Rebecca quickly knocked on the door before pushing it open. 

“I have a question, sir, if you’re finished.” 

“We are,” Itachi said, only letting his relief show in his eyes. “Good day, Miss Robinson.”

The female manager, who had been standing very close to the dark-eyed man, nodded and left without pushing further, though she gave Rebecca a sour look where Itachi couldn’t see.

Rebecca sighed to herself and shrugged it off. If the other women wanted to think that she had some kind of monopoly on Itachi’s affections, that was their problem. In truth, her relationship with him was decidedly platonic, and although she would admit to having had a crush on him back during the early days of their acquaintance, that had since faded into something of a mix between admiration and sisterly affection. 

She honestly didn’t have any idea what kind of relationships he might have in his private life; he did definitely live with someone else…and there was the ring he always wore…but in the end that didn’t really tell her much of anything. 

Calmly laying down the sheet she needed him to approve on his desk, she stood by and watched his shoulders relax gradually as he put the flirting out of his mind and focused on his work. 

_It really does bother him when women proposition him…I know this isn’t the first time…_

“Are you married, sir?”

Rebecca didn’t even realize that she had asked the question aloud until he looked up at her, startled.

“Oh! Pardon me, sir. That’s none of my business.” She covered her eyes with one hand, embarrassed at her slip. 

“Why do you ask, Miss Nayland?” His voice was not angry, just slightly puzzled.

She shook her head and looked back at him with an apologetic smile. “It’s nothing. I shouldn’t pry. I just wondered if that was why you always get angry when people try and flirt with you. Never mind me. Does that letter cover everything?”

He looked back down at the letter, and was silent for a long moment, left hand shifting on the desk. 

“Not officially.” 

“What?” Rebecca was confused. How could the letter unofficially cover everything-

“We’re not officially married.” He looked up, dark eyes distant and peaceful and happy. “But in every way that matters…yes.”

She blinked. “Oh.” 

He looked down again, then shook himself and signed the letter before handing it back to her. “Perfect, as usual, Miss Nayland.”

She nodded, took it and headed for the door, where she paused and looked back. “Sir?”

He looked up again, attentive.

“Thank you, sir.”

Understanding clearly that she wasn’t referring to the letter, he gave her a small smile and nodded. “It’s nothing, Miss Nayland.”

Smiling back, she left. 

_Well, that was interesting. He did say that he trusts me, back when we first made this arrangement. Still, it’s good to know that it’s true. I wonder who his-_ Stopping, it occurred to her for the first time that her boss might be gay. _That would certainly explain a lot._ She shrugged. _Either way, I’m glad he’s happy._

$$$

It wasn’t until Itachi was nominated for a promotion to Operating Senior Manager (a position right under the vice-president of the company) that anyone discovered that he had been hired as a complete unknown without a resume and without references of any kind. 

“-honestly don’t know how it could have happened!”

Rebecca looked up from her computer, frowning at the loud voices that were coming closer. Itachi was busy with a very important report and had asked not to be disturbed for a couple of hours yet…

“May I help you?” She asked politely, but loud enough to cut through the argument as one of the other senior managers (followed by several other people from various departments) rounded the last corner and spilled into the open space in front of her desk, which sat in front and to the right of Itachi’s office door.

“We need to speak with Mr. Aoru immediately,” the senior manager addressed her, brushing off the continued excuses of a man she recognized from her old department down in the basement. 

She kept a frown off her face. “Mr. Aoru asked not to be disturbed-”

“Mr. Aoru will see me now if he wishes to keep his job-”

“What seems to be the problem, gentlemen?” 

Rebecca had yet to figure out how Itachi could silence a large, loud group of people so quickly when his own voice remained low and quiet. He stood in his office door, face attentive and dark eyes calculating.

“Mr. Aoru,” the senior manager huffed indignantly. “We have, as I’m sure you know, been reviewing you for the position of Operating Senior Manager. It is our policy, of course, to check for appropriate qualifications once one reaches this level of management, but when we went to go through your file, Mr. Aoru, this is all we found!” He held out a file folder. 

Itachi slowly stepped out of his office door and across the room just far enough for him to reach the folder. He took it, opened it, and looked down at the contents for a long moment. His expression was blank, but Rebecca could see a nervous thrill in his eyes. 

“Well,” he said at last, looking up at those assembled, “that seems fairly straightforward to me.”

“Y-You-!” The senior manager trailed off into further indignant sputtering. Everyone seemed shocked at this reply, and Rebecca quietly slid her chair back enough to see what was inside. 

The folder in Itachi’s hands was completely empty, except for a small note taped to the back of the inside:

_He’s got a Florida driver’s license and a good brain in his head. I’m hiring him. If you’re smart, you’ll keep him.  
~Benjamin Anderson_

Rebecca only just kept herself composed. _I can’t believe old Ben would do that! No resume, no references…nothing!_ She looked up at her boss…then paused. _On second thought…_

“He advertised that he was looking for a new analyst. I answered his advertisement. He interviewed me for three hours, and decided that that was good enough.” Itachi’s voice was calm, but not flippant. “I have since endeavored to prove my skills and usefulness to this company through my actions, as opposed to mere pieces of paper.”

Silence reigned. 

No one could refute that he was good. That was, of course, the whole reason they were considering him for another promotion anyway. 

“I will, gentlemen, be happy to answer any practical question you have concerning the running of this business, and how I would handle a given situation or problem. That is what I did for Mr. Anderson.” Itachi paused, expectantly. “No questions?”

Silence.

“Then, if you’ll excuse me, gentlemen, I really should get back to this report.” He handed the nearly-empty folder back to the senior manager. “Anything you need me for, Miss Rebecca?” Mutely, she shook her head (he’d started using her first name a few weeks ago at her insistence, but hadn’t quite managed to drop the “Miss” yet).  
Nodding, he turned calmly to go back to his office. Only Rebecca caught the corner of his smirk before the door closed behind him.

Two days later, all of Akatsuki Enterprises was talking about how their new Operating Senior Manager, Itachi Aoru, had originally been hired by walking into the company with a brand-new Florida driver’s license and nothing else.

$$$

But even with all of that, it still might have taken him longer than his “year and eight months” to become the actual CEO of Akatsuki Enterprises, had not an unusual combination of circumstances pushed the issue some five months after he’d been made Operating Senior Manager. 

The first event in and of itself probably wouldn’t have been an issue. The current CEO, Mr. Hebi, announced his imminent retirement. While this came as something of a surprise to most of the company, it was by no means a crisis, and business continued mostly as usual. 

When their Vice-president announced that he was also going to follow his superior into retirement, despite the fact that he was many years younger than the CEO, caused a greater amount of concern, it was still nothing to worry about. There were several candidates within the upper levels of the company who could potentially fill the now-missing leadership, and the Board of Directors got right to work on choosing from those candidates.

The real trouble didn’t start until an anonymous tip was received indicating that corruption was running rampant on the Board of Directors. 

“Hey, Nayland, did you hear?” 

Rebecca looked up, ready to be exasperated with the interruption, until she saw that it was William Hunt. “Hear what, Bill?” Bill was one of the managers working a couple levels below Itachi, and she had gotten to know him fairly well over the past five months. He was fast becoming a good friend, so she felt she could forgive him the interruption. 

_Even if we are absolutely swamped, what with Itachi and the other high-level managers taking on so much work to compensate for our current lack of CEO._

“About the Board! You know, the corruption charge?”

“Oh, yes, I heard. There was an anonymous tip, wasn’t there?”

“Yeah, but,” Bill lowered his voice, leaning further over her desk, “don’t tell anyone, but I just heard this: the charges were completely true. Two-thirds of the board has just resigned!”

“What?” Rebecca stared at him. “They were true?”

“Yep. No question. Didn’t even take that much digging once it was pointed out.” 

“Two-thirds…” she shook her head. “That’s a lot.”

“Yeah. Take awhile to replace ‘em, too.” Bill sighed dramatically. “But, what can you do?” Then, with a wink and the tip of an imaginary hat, he turned. “Well, I’d best let you get back to work, Nayland.”

“Good-bye, Bill.” Rebecca sighed at his antics, and hid a smile. _All that from an anonymous tip, though. I wonder who-_

Itachi’s office door opened and he crossed the room to her desk, absorbed in a sheaf of papers.

Rebecca paused, then greeted him with her usual smile. “Letters, Mr. Aoru?”

“Five, and one report, if you please, Miss Rebecca.”

She indicated a brewing pot of coffee before taking the papers from him. He gave her a quick look of gratitude and paused by her desk a moment longer.

“I just heard from Mr. Hunt that two-thirds of the Board of Directors has resigned over the corruption scandal,” she said nonchalantly, sticking the first of the letters into the paper holder next to her screen so that it would be easier to read. “It seems that the…anonymous tip they received was correct.”

Itachi was still for a moment before replying quietly, “Is that so?”

“Yes.” Fingers already flying through the second paragraph, Rebecca paused and looked up at him. “I do wonder where the tip came from, though.”

Itachi met her gaze with a bland expression and secretive eyes. He remained silent until she handed him his mug, then graced her with a brief smirk as he turned away.  
“The world may never know.”

Rebecca could only stare after him for a moment, before shaking her head with helpless laughter. _Itachi Aoru, you are something else._

Under the circumstances, of course, it was necessary for the remaining management to make some fast decisions. The company needed good, strong, efficient leadership, and it needed it fast. Their stock was plummeting in the wake of the scandal, and chaos within the company itself greatly increased their chances of going under entirely.

Not too many people could honestly admit to being surprised when it was announced that (with consent of their former president) Itachi Aoru was promoted to be the new CEO of Akatsuki Enterprises, Inc.

$$$

Rebecca knocked on the CEO’s office door for the first time, a sheaf of documents to be signed tucked neatly under one arm. At his “Come in,” she opened the door in time to see Itachi putting his cell phone away, and shut the door behind her. 

“Ah, Rebecca. Is that the Thompson contract?”

“Just requiring your signature, sir.”

“Excellent. There are two more contracts to go out this week, I believe?” He looked up when she didn’t respond, to find her grinning at him, green eyes bright. 

He paused, then slowly smiled back. “I keep my promises, Rebecca.”

“I know, sir. I know.” Then, taking a deep breath, she tempered her excitement, and nodded. “Yes, sir. Two more contracts this week, and three next week. You have a meeting later this afternoon with the representatives from…”

 _Did I once think it would be fun to work for him?_ She wondered absently, continuing to rattle off his upcoming appointments. _Fun doesn’t even come close!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At long last, here is Days in Good Company! This fic is more a series of connected vignettes than a fully-connected story. There is a timeline, and a general direction following Itachi and Kisame's life together, but nothing more. Chapters thus vary in length and seriousness.
> 
> For this one, there are probably many inaccuracies, and I realize that the circumstances of Itachi's hiring/promotions are quite implausible. Chalk it up to the AU if you like. :)
> 
> I'm not going to try and put up all the chapters at once, but I can definitely promise that it won't take me two years this time.


	2. Kyle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kisame attends a chemist's conference...and runs into someone he hasn't seen for a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up for some mild relationship angst in this one. For anyone who has wanted a bit of Kisame's view of the events of Nights in White Satin, this is the chapter for you.

“Itachi,” Kisame knocked on the partially open door to his lover’s study.

“Come in,” Itachi’s quiet voice replied and Kisame pushed the door open further and went to perch on the end of the long desk. The dark-eyed man turned away from his computer, his eyes welcoming and questioning.

“Well…there’s this conference coming up, for the National Chemists’ Association, and I was thinking that I haven’t been for a few years,” Kisame explained, showing the other man the notice that had just arrived in the mail. “Would you mind a trip to New York for a week?” 

Itachi looked at it with interest, then turned back to his computer with a thoughtful frown, pulling up a calendar. “Which week is it?”

“Four weeks from now.” 

His lover examined the schedule for a minute, then turned back with a satisfied nod. “I am doing nothing that cannot be rearranged, and I have some things that would be more easily taken care of in New York anyway,” he agreed. “I will tell Rebecca on Monday.”

“Cool,” Kisame grinned and leaned over to kiss the other man before sliding off the desk and heading for the door. “I’ll go see about hotel and plane stuff.”

***

The soft chime of his wristwatch alarm went off at seven thirty, and Kisame slid one arm carefully out of Itachi’s sleeping embrace to turn it off. Itachi himself merely shifted, rolling back to his side of the bed without really waking up. Kisame stretched languidly, running fond and appreciative eyes along Itachi’s naked back and loose hair, before tucking his hands behind his head and contemplating the ceiling sleepily while he woke himself up a bit more.

Early sunlight and the constant hum of New York traffic filtered dimly through the partly drawn curtains, and the blue-haired man maneuvered himself out of bed, careful not to wake his partner. They had arrived in the city yesterday, and had spent the rest of the day relaxing, at Kisame’s insistence. He had deliberately booked their flights so that they would have the day before his conference began and two days after it ended with nothing to do but relax and maybe do a little sight-seeing. He had no problems if Itachi wanted to work harder than any normal mortal could ever manage to make sure his company was running smoothly and at peak performance, but he was also going to make sure that his lover got vacations every once in a while. If left to his own devices, Itachi had a tendency to forget that stress relief was important too. 

_Ah well,_ Kisame thought, a fond, wry smile crossing his face, _at least he’s sensible enough to let me talk him into it on a regular basis. And he was good yesterday – no work at all! He’ll make up for it today, though, I’m sure. Of course, I’ll be busy all week with the conference._ He shook his head at himself. _Heh. I really shouldn’t miss so many years in between – I always feel like I have to go to every panel and lecture possible to make up for it._

The blue-haired man perched himself on the windowsill and watched the sunlight slowly turn the skyscrapers gold from the top down. Then, a few minutes before eight (when he knew Itachi’s alarm would go off) he got down and went to take a shower and wash up so that he would be out of Itachi’s way when the dark-eyed man finally got up. The first panel he had to attend wasn’t until nine, and he had managed to get them a nice room in the same hotel as the conference, so he wasn’t feeling particularly rushed. 

He came out a little while later in time to greet a still-sleepy Itachi with a kiss before letting the other man into the bathroom. When Itachi was ready and slightly more awake, they went down to the lobby to eat breakfast together before going their separate ways – Kisame to one of the hotel’s elegant conference rooms, and Itachi back upstairs to finish getting ready to go out for his business meetings. 

***

Kisame went upstairs briefly at lunchtime, only to find that Itachi was still out. Sighing, but pleased to see a novel lying in wait on the table by the window, he decided to head back downstairs to eat and wait for the next lecture. 

He finished eating with plenty of time to spare, and was heading for somewhere a little quieter than the hotel’s main lobby when a voice hailed him from behind.

“Kisame? Kisame Hoshigaki?” 

He turned to meet the bright blue eyes of a tall, red-haired man, who was looking at him with surprise and starting to grin. Kisame’s own shock kept him from saying anything for a second, then he blinked, and slowly returned the other man’s smile, holding out a hand. “Kyle?”

“Yeah! Man, it has been awhile, hasn’t it?” The red-haired man took his hand in a firm grip that he remembered well. 

“Kyle Bannock. It has been awhile indeed. What…it must be nine years now. Much too long,” Kisame was grinning fully now, and shaking his head in amazement. 

“That long? I guess you must be right. Well, where are you off to?” Kyle asked, tucking his hands into his pockets and letting his shoulders drop into an easy slouch that didn’t seem to have changed at all with the years. “I assume you’re here for the conference.”

“Yeah,” Kisame said, nodding and stepping back a bit, looking the other man over. “Going to the lecture on some of the archaeological applications. You?”

“Same, actually, though I didn’t think you were much interested in the really old stuff. Didn’t you end up taking that police job?” Kyle quirked his head questioningly and Kisame nodded, following the red-head in the direction of one of the smaller conference rooms. 

“Well, sort of,” Kisame gave him a wry grin. “Technically, I’m working free-lance, but yeah, most of that is for the police, and some for the Coast Guard.”

“Still down in Florida, then?”

Kisame nodded, discreetly eyeing the other man again and keeping a disbelieving headshake to himself. It wasn’t every day you ran into your only ex-boyfriend; though Kisame had to admit that they had parted on friendly terms, and had even stayed good friends for almost a year after their break-up before Kyle had moved away. He had been Kisame’s second serious relationship (the first had been a girlfriend during high school). 

“That’s cool. I’m up near Boston, now, actually, though it’s been quite a trip to get there-” 

Their talk turned quickly to more work- and conference-related topics then, and Kisame found himself remembering why they had been such good friends in the first place. Kyle was as gregarious as ever, and had quite a lot of interesting stories to tell about some of his jobs. 

They parted after the lecture with another firm handshake. Kyle gave him a thoughtful look before letting his hand go, though, and asked what his schedule was for tomorrow. Kisame told him, and was glad to discover that they had a couple of other lectures and panels together. 

“We should catch up,” Kyle suggested as he turned to leave, grinning over one shoulder. “Maybe over lunch tomorrow, if you’re not busy.”

Kisame thought over what Itachi had mentioned of his schedule for the week, and remembered the other man saying that he’d be gone over lunchtime on Tuesday as well as Monday. “Yeah, I think I’m free. I’ll let you know tomorrow morning, okay?”

“No problem!” One last wave, and Kyle disappeared into the crowd now gathering in the lobby. 

_Well,_ Kisame thought, nodding and turning to head in the other direction. _That was nice. Unexpected, but nice._ He smiled wryly, and admitted to himself that he was rather relieved that the topic of their former relationship had not come up. _Now, let me go see if Itachi’s back yet. I’ve heard there’s a really good pizza place a few blocks over that we should try for dinner._

***

“…and the next thing I know, there’s this huge _bang_ and I turn around and he’s standing there with a test tube in one hand and a beaker in the other, face blackened around his goggles, hair blown back and half-standing up – you know, the whole crazy chemist look, Hollywood-perfect – and he’s just standing there blinking at it, and then he looks up at me and starts trying to defend himself and make excuses and all.” Kyle watched Kisame dissolve into laughter again and finished his story, grinning himself. “Of course one of the girls in the class starts screaming, and everyone’s milling around, and man was it a mess to clean up, but…” he trailed off, chuckling. “It’s funny now. Can’t say as I didn’t warn him either – if he wants to think that some crackpot website knows more about chemistry than me, that’s his problem.”

Kisame caught his breath, but his strong, white grin didn’t disappear. “Too true. There are reasons I never got into teaching, but occasionally I think it would be fun, just for the antics.”

“It’s not a bad job,” Kyle said, and turned back to gathering up his notes and pens. “Which is why I finally settled down on it. I might go back to school myself, eventually, and get a degree so I can teach at college, but I’m cool with the high school for now. They’re pretty smart kids, generally, and a few of them really get into it. I’ve sent at least three off to college planning to major in something chemistry related.”

“You always were good with kids anyway,” Kisame acknowledged, gathering his own things up and still smiling. The blue-haired man rose, stretching, and Kyle kept his appreciative glance surreptitious. He had forgotten, in the years they’d been apart, just how charismatic his friend and former lover was; spending a great deal of time together over the past two days, reminiscing and catching up had forcibly reminded him of that fact. In response to the compliment, he shrugged, running a hand through his own red locks and giving the man a lopsided grin. 

“Well, I’d best get back upstairs,” Kisame said then, a real note of regret in his voice, “and get a little rest until dinner. This conference is always fun but it takes a lot out of you. I’ll catch you tomorrow?”

“Sure,” Kyle said easily, and turned back to his own stuff so as not to be too obvious about watching Kisame head for the door and lobby at an easy pace. He ran a hand through his hair again, and stared down at his notes blindly. _Man, this has been a trip. I didn’t think I’d see him again…he hasn’t changed at all._ The red-haired man hesitated, biting his lip a little and glancing towards the door. _I wonder if…_

Seeing that the rest of the attendees of this lecture were clearing out, Kyle got to his feet too and headed for the lobby, making up his mind as he went. _It can’t hurt to ask him to dinner, anyway. He was fine with lunch yesterday, and this doesn’t have to be all that different. Not a date, exactly, just more catching up._ Nodding to himself, he picked up his pace a little, searching for Kisame’s distinctive hair through the crowd. 

_Ah! There he is._ Kyle threaded his way through the crowd, raising a hand to wave and catch the other man’s attention-

-and paused when he realized that Kisame was talking with another man who stood close to him where Kisame was leaning against a pillar in the lobby, trying not to be in the way of the people streaming by. 

Kyle hesitated. _He didn’t_ say _he was seeing anyone now, but-_ He started to turn away, doubt creeping into his stomach, but apparently Kisame had seen him after all, because the blue-haired man waved in return and was beckoning him over. 

Not sure how to leave now without looking awkward or rude, Kyle took a deep breath and continued on through the crowd, hoping that his smile didn’t look too tentative. 

“…a friend you should meet. I hadn’t seen him for nearly nine years, and then here he was,” Kisame was explaining to the other man as Kyle drew near. The blue-haired man turned to him as he approached, though, and beckoned him again. “Itachi, this is Kyle Bannock. It’d probably take me an hour to list all the different jobs he’s had,” this was accompanied by a teasing grin, since it had taken Kyle that long, “but now he’s teaching chemistry at a high school near Boston.”

Kyle nodded, and Kisame turned to him. “Kyle, this is Itachi Aoru.” 

Itachi Aoru was a small man, a good head shorter than Kisame, and had a slender build that was emphasized nicely by the dark, impeccable business suit he was wearing. Cool, dark eyes watched Kyle, set off by pale skin and a long ponytail of black hair. _Asian,_ Kyle thought, managing a smile and offering a hand. “Good to meet you, Mr. Aoru. What do you do?”

The polite blankness on the other man’s face relaxed a bit, making him look a tad less inapproachable. He shook Kyle’s hand with a brief, firm grip. “I am president of a small company down in Florida, Mr. Bannock. I am pleased to meet you as well.” His voice was deep, and just as smooth and polite as the rest of him. _Not a very expressive guy, is he?_ Kyle thought, wondering how he and Kisame got along. _Could they really be dating?_

“Not going to be small for long, with you in charge,” Kisame murmured, pride showing in his voice and eyes. Dark eyes slid back to Kisame, and Kyle caught a glimpse of a smirk curling the corners of the man’s mouth before he bowed his head in acknowledgment of the compliment.

 _They must know each other pretty well, but they could just be rooming together, or something. It does make travel arrangements easier._ Kyle thought, not really aware of his rationalizations. He stuck his hands in his pockets, and brought his attention back to the conversation. 

“Well,” Kisame was saying, “we should probably get upstairs. See you later?”

Realizing that this last was addressed to him, Kyle nodded, not having to force his normal grin too much, and left them with a wave. He did stop a little ways on, though, to look back and watch as the pair crossed the lobby and waited for one of the elevators. They stood near each other, but the shorter man held himself fairly stiffly, and there was none of the casual touching that might indicate they were more than friends. 

_I…don’t know. It’s strange._ Kyle thought, frowning slightly and heading for the front doors. _But Kisame would have said something, wouldn’t he? Surely he’d have at least hinted at it, if they’re dating._

The problem, he was beginning to realize, was that although he had agreed to their break-up at the time, _Kisame_ had been the one to initiate it, and Kyle had never really wanted it to end. They had stayed good friends for awhile after that, and he had been able to fool himself into believing that that was enough, especially since Kisame hadn’t started dating anyone else. Distance after he had moved had made his regret easier to forget, but now that they had started talking again, Kyle realized that his feelings hadn’t ever really changed. 

_Well…and why not?_ he thought, a bit defiantly. _We were good together! We had a lot in common – still do, obviously! – and I never really did think that we had drifted apart as much as he said we did. We were practically sharing my apartment for that last year!_ They had met on an early, just-got-out-of-college job, and had taken about a year to work into the relationship which had lasted just over four years.

 _And now there’s this guy, and it just doesn’t seem like Kisame at all._ Kyle flopped back onto the bed in his hotel room, still frowning vaguely up at the ceiling. _It doesn’t seem like they could have all that much in common – the guy isn’t even a scientist, just a businessman. And so distant, too! Not that Kisame’s a totally open book or anything, but he’s expressive enough and certainly liked talking with people. This guy doesn’t seem like he says anything beyond what’s absolutely necessary._

The uncertainty of it coiled through his mind. _But, then again, it also isn’t much like Kisame to go on vacations with someone he’s not close to. Would he go with someone who’s just a good friend? He might, I think. We took a couple weekend trips together, and even one after we broke up._

Sighing, and still not sure quite what he meant to do about it, Kyle tried to put his doubts out of his mind. He rose and decided to go grab something quick for dinner and call it an early night. 

_It just doesn’t seem fair, somehow,_ he thought, shaking his head. _We were so close, and we haven’t seen each other for nine years, and then when we finally do have the chance to get together again, he’s got this other guy taking up his time too. Maybe…maybe I should go talk with him. With Aoru. See what’s going on._

That decision tentatively made, he went to find dinner.

***

“What time do you have meetings today?” Kisame asked, coming out of the bathroom toweling his hair dry. 

Itachi blinked sleepily at him from his half-reclined position in bed. “None. One more tomorrow over lunch.”

Kisame looked surprised and pleased at this. He sat down on the edge of the bed and leaned over to give Itachi a very thorough kiss that did a nice job of waking him up the rest of the way. “Good,” the blue-haired man murmured as he drew away, chuckling at Itachi’s protesting grumble.

Then it was Itachi’s turn to raise an eyebrow at him. “So now I am to be rewarded for not working?”

“No,” Kisame said, fondly brushing long strands of loose, dark hair out of Itachi’s eyes, “I just like it when you remember to relax.”

“I relax,” Itachi protested, frowning vaguely as Kisame rose and began to get dressed. The other man paused with his belt half-buckled to give Itachi a Look. The dark-eyed man held his gaze for a moment before looking away. “Sometimes.”

“Exactly,” Kisame said, grinning at him. 

“It’s important that I make sure everything gets done,” Itachi insisted, sitting up.

“I know,” Kisame said, coming over to sit by him again. “Normally it’s okay – I think you do better when you’re just a little bit too busy anyway. Just so long as you take opportunities like now to relax, it’s fine.” 

Itachi nodded, satisfied, and leaned forward to kiss his lover. Kisame returned it only for a moment, though, before pulling back. 

“Tease,” Itachi muttered darkly, and a mischievous smile tugged at the corners of Kisame’s mouth. 

“I’ll be late if I stay longer,” he pointed out, not without regret, and Itachi waved him off. “I should be back up for lunch, though. You’ll be here?”

Itachi gestured towards the book he had waiting on the table and nodded. Kisame smiled, and grabbed his notes and pen before leaving. 

He sighed and looked at the clock: eight fifty. Going back to sleep was tempting…but he had also been wanting to read that book for almost a month now. Sliding out of bed, he padded softly into the bathroom to splash water on his face and brush his hair. Tangles taken care of, he pulled it back into a loose, half-ponytail and went back out to his suitcase to find suitable “lounging” clothes, of which he did actually own some now. 

Kisame might grumble at him for working too much, but in all honesty, Itachi felt like he relaxed more now than he ever had working for the Uchiha Corporation. Maybe it was just that he had someone else to relax with and set an example, on weekends and sometimes during the evenings. He had rediscovered book-reading as a hobby (working through Kisame’s not-insignificant collection was going to keep him occupied for awhile), and had polished up his violin playing considerably.

Dressed comfortably in a pair of loose black pants and a loose, dark green shirt with an open collar, Itachi pulled the curtains open fully and curled up in the chair next to them to read. His meetings had gone well, the past three days, so he could sit and read with a clear mind and no intention to let anything disturb him until Kisame returned for lunch.

By the time Kisame got back, he had gotten through half of the book, and decided that the rest could wait until afternoon. They ate downstairs in the hotel restaurant, and upon hearing that his lover had a little over an hour before he had to be at another lecture, Itachi persuaded him back upstairs to finish what he had wanted to start earlier that morning. Kisame laughed, blue-grey eyes brightening, and did not protest. 

Itachi lounged in bed for a little while after that, waiting for Kisame to shower quickly and wave good-bye before the blue-haired man went back downstairs. He had to admit that it did feel good to spend a whole day being lazy. Not very often, of course, but he thought he had earned this vacation. Finally he got up and showered, pulling on his comfortable shirt and a pair of dark jeans before grabbing his book and heading downstairs too. There was a small café with an outdoor porch off to one side of the hotel lobby that he had wanted to try all week. 

Thinking that he could probably finish the book by the time Kisame was ready to go to dinner, Itachi settled down at one of the outdoor tables with a steaming mug of tea and a scone that had caught his eye. _We should get back to England sometime,_ he thought, smiling inwardly at the very English habit he was practicing. _Maybe see a bit more of the country than just London._

He had only been reading for about half an hour, though, when he became aware that someone was standing next to his table. He was startled to look up and find Kisame’s friend from yesterday. Kyle Bannock, he remembered. 

“Kisame is in a lecture right now-” he began, but the red-headed man cut him off with a shake of his head. 

“I’m not looking for Kisame.” 

Itachi paused, startled, and then went on slowly, “I see.”

“Mind if I join you?” Bannock asked, gesturing to the chair across from Itachi. Itachi shook his head and put his book down as the other man sat, then waited patiently. The man stayed quiet, though, scrutinizing Itachi intensely. Not entirely comfortable with this, Itachi distracted himself by studying the other man in return. Short, unruly red hair that caught nice gold highlights in the afternoon sun and very blue eyes were definitely Kyle Bannock’s most striking features; he also had a smattering of light freckles across his nose and a charming, almost mischievous grin that Itachi remembered seeing yesterday. Handsome, intelligent, outgoing, Itachi catalogued him tentatively, wondering vaguely if he was a good teacher or not. 

“So you’re in business, are you, Mr. Aoru?”

“Yes,” Itachi replied, meeting the still-intense blue eyes calmly.

“Do you work in a chemistry-related field?”

“No,” Itachi said, keeping his puzzlement and continued unease from his voice. 

“Really? I’d have thought you did, since you’re here,” Bannock did not disguise his confusion.

“I am not here for the conference,” the dark-eyed man explained, “Kisame said that he was going, and invited me to come along for the trip. Since it has been awhile since my last vacation, and since I had other business to take care of in New York, I accepted.”

Something odd flashed briefly through blue eyes before the red-haired man nodded, sitting back in his chair. “I see. Have you known each other long?”

Itachi hesitated before replying. “Nearly eight years.”

Now it was the other man’s turn to pause slightly before nodding knowingly. “You must be pretty good friends, then.”

“We are very close, yes,” Itachi said, still trying to determine what the man’s intentions were. He didn’t seem to be flirting, but….

Blue eyes were scrutinizing him intensely again, and Itachi felt his shoulders tense against his increased discomfort. 

“So, how did you guys meet?”

Itachi did frown ever so slightly now, the uncomfortable feeling settling further into his stomach, and ignored the question. “Mr. Bannock, why are you asking me these things?”

The other man blinked, but then relaxed into a small half-grin. “Sorry, I guess that’s rude of me. I’m just curious. You’re a very…interesting person, Mr. Aoru. Not quite what I was expecting of a friend of Kisame’s. But that’s okay,” he shook his head, eyes suddenly distant, “it’s not quite the setting I’m used to thinking of him in, is all.”

Itachi, feeling more uneasy than ever for reasons that he couldn’t explain, pressed on with a question of his own, trying to keep his voice disinterested, “How do you know Kisame, Mr. Bannock?” 

This seemed to surprise the other man. “He didn’t tell you anymore about me? Huh. I’d’ve thought…but maybe not. He can be a pretty private person sometimes, as you probably know.”

Itachi did know, and couldn’t hold off a slight feeling of resentment against this man who so abruptly appeared and was now claiming intimate knowledge of Kisame’s personality and habits. 

“What did he not tell me?” Itachi asked, hoping that his annoyance and nervousness didn’t show in his tone. He was abruptly certain that he did not want to know the answer to this question, but that he had to ask it anyway. 

“Well, I guess it doesn’t matter much, if he didn’t want to tell you,” the other man shook his head, pushing his chair back and getting up. “He and I dated for nearly four years just after college. Talking this week…brought back memories.” He turned and headed for the door into the lobby, waving briefly. “Sorry to bother you, Mr. Aoru.”

And abruptly, Itachi realized what the other man had been trying to find out. 

_He wasn’t flirting with_ me _…_

He started up out of his chair, his eyes wide with shock, but the man was already disappearing back into the lobby. He stood there, wanting to go after him and do...something. Anything. He didn’t know what, and though he realized that a further confrontation would not do any good, the desire to at least warn the other man off was hard to fight. 

Kyle Bannock wanted _Kisame._

 _Kisame is_ mine _,_ was his next, fierce thought. Squeezing his eyes shut and pulling in a deep breath, he returned to his seat, trying to calm down. _It doesn’t matter what was between them in the past. Kisame is with me now._

This self-reassurance did not explain why he was still staring down at his teacup with more anxiety than he was willing to acknowledge, his hands clenched into fists so that he wouldn’t have to admit to himself that they were shaking violently. 

It also didn’t explain the tiny, tiny thread of doubt that was still wrapping itself around his heart. _But…he’s right that I’m not…we don’t…we’ve never shared interests like that. I’m not a scientist. And he and Kisame do obviously get along well…_ Frowning, he forced himself to pick up his book again, but could only stare blankly down at the words, another, more worrying question niggling at the back of his mind.

_Why didn’t Kisame tell me?_

He shook his head almost violently, pushing the unwanted thoughts away and forcing himself to sit back and start reading.

He didn’t get much more reading done that afternoon, though by the time Kisame came to find him, he thought that he had gotten his agitation enough under control to keep it hidden from his lover. Kisame still asked him if something was wrong about halfway through dinner, so Itachi shook his head calmly, kept his mouth full, and really clamped down on his swirling thoughts.

It was easier once they were back in their room and alone, and Kisame’s usual, passionate touches helped, but Itachi still lay awake long after Kisame had fallen asleep. He frowned up at the ceiling, and though he hated himself for the doubt, he had to wonder.

 _He waited six years for me, and I know he loves me. But…will he always? Our work is nothing in common, and if he found someone else that he can talk with about all of that, and was more comfortable with him…what if he hadn’t really wanted their relationship to end? What if Kyle giving them another chance is interesting to him? Would he stay with me?_ Feeling slightly sick at even the thought of losing Kisame, Itachi cut off the unwanted speculation by sheer force of will, turning over onto his side and curling up. 

A part of him insisted that such assumptions were ridiculous, and with that help, he eventually fought off the cold feeling in his stomach long enough to fall asleep. But his sleep was fitful, and plagued by vague dreams that were not pleasant.

He woke late to find Kisame already gone, and had to hurry and get ready for his last business meeting, wishing that he could see Kisame now, and wondering if Kyle Bannock was with him.

***

Kisame rose and applauded with everyone else as the last speaker of the conference finished up, and then stretched before gathering up his notes. 

He was sorry to admit that his mind had not been as much on the lecture as it should have been. Pleasant memories of lunch with Kyle earlier in the day had mingled the persistent feeling from the night before that Itachi was upset about something, combining to leave him with less concentration for the conference itself. 

_I hope he’s feeling better, whatever was bothering him,_ Kisame thought, wondering if his lover were back from his meeting that day yet. _Perhaps that had something to do with it. He was fine even at lunch yesterday, but maybe some business thing came up after that. He does worry when he isn’t actually at the office._ He let a brief, wry smile cross his face as he began navigating through the lingering crowd. _He always takes care of any problems, of course, and usually without any real difficulty. Not that I should talk, though. I get the same way with my experiments sometimes._

Kyle had caught up with him by the time he reached the door. “Old man Halston’s a pretty good speaker, isn’t he? I’m glad they got him for the closing lecture.”

“Yes, he is,” Kisame agreed, smiling. “It was interesting.”

Kyle shook his head in admiration. “There’s some cool stuff going on in the universities these days, I tell ya. Makes me wish I were back in college.”

Kisame smiled, but shook his head. “Not me. I’m fine where I am. It is nice to hear about it, though. I should subscribe to a couple more journals, I think, just to make sure I’m getting all the news.”

Kyle nodded. “That’s how I keep up. And I try to make it here every other year, at least. You were always bad about conferences, though.”

“Still am,” Kisame admitted, grinning unrepentantly. They were out in the lobby now, and Kisame didn’t think to protest when Kyle dropped an easy hand onto his shoulder and steered him to the side a bit. They weren’t far from the open door of the now-closed café; apparently the patio was left available even in the evenings.

“Kisame…?” Kyle asked quietly, sounding more hesitant than he had all week. Kisame pulled his scattered thoughts back together and looked at the other man questioningly. The hesitant but unmistakable warmth in those blue eyes was almost enough of an answer, even without Kyle’s other hand coming up to rest on his other shoulder. “I’ve been thinking a lot this week, and I was…well, I just wondered if you’d come to dinner with me tonight…?”

He trailed off as Kisame bowed his head, closing his eyes against the anger and sadness rising in him. _Damn it…I hoped we were past this…that we could just be friends…_

“How are you asking, Kyle?” He said a few seconds later when he knew his voice would be under control. He looked up again. 

Uncertainty flitted across the red-head’s face, but he did not move away. “What do you mean?”

“You know exactly what I mean, Kyle,” Kisame replied, voice firm but not harsh. He understood how Kyle must feel, could even sympathize a little. If he’d been single, he might even have accepted the offer. 

But he wasn’t single anymore, and he had no regrets about that fact.

“If you’re asking as a friend, and a friend only,” he went on, letting his voice soften, “then I would consider it. If this is a date, then no. I am not free.”

He was not surprised that Kyle let him go then, but he was surprised at the angry, almost mutinous expression that passed over the other man’s face as he looked away. “So you are seeing him then. Aoru.”

Kisame frowned a bit at the scathing murmur. “Yes, I am.”

Kyle didn’t quite flinch at that, but turned back to Kisame with a gaze that was half-angry, half-pleading. “Why? Why are you with him? What do you have in common?”

Kisame was taken aback by this question, and didn’t have time to cut in before Kyle went on, upset, confused and pleading.

“He’s just a businessman, Kisame, not even a scientist. Doesn’t even do business in our field! He’s so distant and polite…how can you be with someone who has so little expression? You like _talking_ with people, I know you do, and he hardly seems the type to make casual conversation. I can’t begin to picture him at a…a football game or a bar. Why are you with someone like him?”

Through his anger, Kisame realized that this was probably the first completely honest picture of Itachi that he had ever been given by someone who didn’t know his lover. It was informative, if very upsetting at the moment.

“Stop it, Kyle.” He was glaring now, he knew, and his hands were clenched into fists. He wasn’t feeling quite ready to hit the other man yet, but he was getting closer. “Don’t presume to know him, or my reasons for being with him, after a few minutes of conversation. I can understand that you’re upset, but if you’re going to be insulting then we are done.”

Kyle looked away, his handsome face twisted by very real pain, and though Kisame wasn’t in a mood to feel sympathetic at the moment, he knew that Kyle was not trying to be catty. “Well, I guess that explains our break-up. If he’s the kind you want, then it’s no wonder I wasn’t good enough.”

Kisame shook his head. “It’s not that you weren’t _good_ enough, Kyle, you just weren’t what I needed. There’s a difference. What we had was good, I won’t deny that. I enjoyed it; I still enjoy your company. You’re a good, intelligent man….”

Kyle did not answer that, and only the barest flick of his eyes over Kisame’s shoulder alerted the blue-haired man that he should turn around-

-to see Itachi standing a little ways behind them, closer to the café door. 

His face was particularly blank, and only the slightly-widened dark eyes, filled with such a tangle of emotions that Kisame couldn’t begin to read them all at a glance, told him that Itachi had heard most (if not all) of the conversation. 

“Itachi…” Kisame began, but Itachi just stared at him in silence, before turning abruptly and walking out onto the dark patio. There was a brusqueness in his movements that Kisame read as a signal that the other man wanted to be left alone, but the blue-haired man decided that that would be a bad idea right now. _Damn it. He shouldn’t have to go through this either. All my fault…I should have made things clear to both of them at the beginning…_

It took his eyes a few seconds to adjust to the lower light level out here, though there was enough of New York’s ever-present traffic to make it fairly easy to see. Itachi had gone to the far side of the porch and was standing with his back to the doorway, clutching the railing with both hands. The briefcase he had been carrying lay on its side at his feet, and Kisame could see the lines of tension in his lover’s back even through the dark.

“Itachi,” he began again as he approached, but Itachi’s next words, soft and completely unexpected, stopped him about ten paces back.

“He’s right, you know.” 

Kisame gaped. “What?”

“He’s right,” Itachi repeated quietly, still not turning around. The softness did not hide the pain and fear in his voice. “We’re not so much alike. You might be happier with-”

“ _No_ ,” Kisame cut in, harshly. “Absolutely not.”

Itachi stiffened in surprise, and Kisame wanted to go to him, but held himself back. He had supposed they would have some conversation like this eventually, even though a part of him had hoped it wouldn’t ever be necessary. If it was to be now, so be it. No one else was around except for Kyle, who had hesitantly followed them out and was probably the only other person in the world who deserved to hear this anyway. 

“No, Itachi, he is _not_ right, because he doesn’t understand,” Kisame took a deep breath, knowing that this was not going to be easy. He had gotten so used to hiding his own uncertainties from Itachi…but the need for that was long past, and it was time to end it. There should be no need to hide things from each other; not anymore.

“I don’t blame him for that. As far as he knows me – and he does know me well – my relationship with you is not what he would expect. But he wasn’t there, and he doesn’t know why things have changed.” Kisame did not turn around, but he felt Kyle shift and start to leave. “No, Kyle, you stay too. I do not love you, but I do respect you and care for you as a friend. You should hear this, because I want both of you to understand. You both deserve that from me.”

A brief hesitation, and then Kyle’s voice, subdued, “All right.”

Kisame nodded. Itachi was to all appearances still staring out at the late evening traffic, but he knew that the dark-eyed man was listening. Addressing himself to his lover, Kisame took a deep breath and began.

“I met you, Itachi, in one of the last places on earth I was ever expecting to meet anyone. I go to Mardi Gras sometimes for the dancing and the costumes, but not for any kind of companionship. It is the perfect place to blend anonymously into a crowd and have fun, without having to worry about even speaking to the people around you, much less any more intimate interaction. That’s how it had always been before, and I was not expecting that year to be any different.

“But then I saw you, sitting there dressed all in black and watching the dancing with such intense eyes, and something about that called out to me. At the time I had no idea why you were so compelling, I just knew that I had to get you to dance, to help you move to the music you were obviously feeling and not quite understanding. Now, I think it was the leashed passion for life I could see in your eyes; normally, you keep it so well-hidden that most people don’t even guess at it. But that night, for whatever reason, your mask was down and I could tell that you needed to let that passion free.

“We danced, and I barely touched you. I couldn’t, because I knew that if I touched more than your hands I would kiss you, and that scared me. By the time the dancing was done, though, and I had gotten you away from the crowd, I wanted you too much for that to matter any more, and when you had accepted my offer and we had gotten back to my room, my doubts were gone. I’d never done anything like this in my life, had a one-night-stand with a total stranger; I’ve always been rather cautious and worked into intimate relationships with people more slowly. But this time, somehow, I knew that I wouldn’t regret it.

“And I didn’t. I woke up the next morning and realized that even if I never saw you again, even if I never knew your name, I would not regret that night, not ever. You had needed it at least as badly as I had, if not more, and I was happy that I had been able to give you that, a few hours’ worth of pleasure and joy. I also wondered who you were, that you would stifle your passion so much that this was the only way it could find escape, with a complete stranger that you never planned to see again. I wanted to take you away from whatever life made you that way, right then, and make you a part of my life. I suppose I was biased, having first met you when I could see the ardor that you normally keep hidden, but I thought that it wasn’t right that you should cover it with a mask.

“But I knew that I couldn’t ask you to come with me, or to tell me anything about you. If you lived with a mask such as that on, then you would almost certainly fight any attempt of mine to make a place in your life. I didn’t know anything about you or your situation; you could have been married and had three kids for all I knew. I did know that if I was the only enemy you had to fight, you would win – an outside enemy would be too easy to put up walls and barriers against. So I couldn’t pursue you, not in any way. I had to pretend to all the confidence I didn’t have, and leave you with the only enemy I thought you might not win against, an enemy that was already inside your defenses: temptation. 

“I have never told you this, Itachi, but I think you should know it now; I walked out of that room in love with you and certain that I would never see you again. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done.

“Two years you held out, and your voice on the phone that day was one of the most welcome shocks I’ve ever had. I’ll admit, too, that I took quick advantage of some friends in informed places to find you, but it was worth it. All the hope I’d been trying to kill suddenly came to life again, and I knew that my chances had just increased, although probably not by much. So I came to you, and once again, you were just as desperate for someone to let your passion out with, some way to let yourself live a little, and I knew that I hadn’t been wrong about you. 

“But I still couldn’t give you anything to fight me with; you had to fight yourself, because I hoped – prayed – that your truer self would win out over the façade you wore as protection. So, once again, I had to leave in the morning with a confident smile and the same temptation as before; the chance to let your real desires out, to be yourself with someone.

“And the same was true for every meeting thereafter. I know you only called on business trips because that was the easiest way for you to hide what was going on from your family, but I loved the opportunities it gave us both – I’d never traveled quite as much as I did those six years, and it gave me all sorts of chances to get you out and to try other things, things that I’m sure you wouldn’t have tried on your own. But every time you called, and with the time between calls growing consistently shorter, my confidence was less an act and more real. I knew you would call again; my worry came from the fact that I didn’t know what was going on in your normal life that might tear you away from me without warning. My problem all along was that I wanted more than just an affair – I wanted you to be with me, for life, and somehow I had to make you see that that would work. 

“And I succeeded, because when it came down to the line and you had to make a choice, you chose me. I have never been happier in my life than these two years since the day you came to live with me.”

Kisame took a deep breath, closing his eyes briefly before going on. Itachi still had not turned around, but the tension in his back had eased into something else that Kisame couldn’t quite read. Kyle shifted a little in the chair he had taken, but made no comment. 

“In a way, Kyle, you are right. My whole relationship with Itachi has been quite outside the norm for me, right from the very beginning, but perhaps in a way that is what has made it so important. With you, it took nearly a year of being friends and then dating before I was comfortable enough with our relationship to become lovers, and though I have never slept with anyone but the two of you, the other times when I have dated I have been similarly cautious.” He sighed, turning a little to give Kyle a sad half-smile. “And you’re also right that Itachi and I didn’t have much in common, at least to start. But I’m more than happy to try new things, from travel to food to music, and Itachi has done the same, and so over the years we have grown to have things in common, even if we did not start out doing so.”

Kisame closed his eyes again then, before leaning back to look up at the night-lit skyscrapers towering above them. 

“I cannot think of anything else that I wanted to say. I hope that it helps, at least a little bit, for both of you.”

***

Kyle stayed still for a long moment after Kisame finished speaking, staring down at the ground and his clasped hands. It hurt, still, in a lot of ways, but…

_I do understand now._

That Kisame had been so taken with this man from the very first did indeed mean something special. That he had since invited him not only into his life, but into his home…that was more telling than Aoru probably realized. Kyle had been to Kisame’s house, but he had never stayed there, not once, and he had certainly not been invited to share it. As lonely as Kisame had sometimes been after his parents died, he had still not been willing to open up that place to anyone. 

_It hurts, but…I understand. And if that’s truly how he feels, then I won’t get in the way of that._

Slowly, he rose to his feet. Kisame looked down from the sky and turned to face him fully. Further back, so did Itachi Aoru. 

“I am sorry, Kisame.” He said, quietly, not really trying to hide the pain in his smile, but nodding to let his former lover and (he hoped) friend know that he meant it. “And I apologize to you as well, Itachi Aoru.”

“It’s all right, Kyle,” Kisame said, returning the sad smile.

“I accept your apology, Kyle Bannock,” came Itachi’s voice, soft but sincere.

Kyle turned his blue eyes to meet the dark ones that he could just barely make out. “Take care of him? Please? I see now that you’ve taken away the loneliness that even I couldn’t…please?”

The other man seemed startled by this, as did Kisame, but Kyle didn’t take his eyes away from Itachi. A second later, he got a sharp nod and a firm, quiet reply: “You have my word.”

Pushing the pain aside long enough to realize that, given time, he would be happy for them, he smiled again at them both, less sad this time. “I’d best be going then. See you ‘round?”

“Sure. Have a safe trip home, Kyle,” Kisame said, “and don’t let those kids run you too ragged.”

The mix of concern and teasing in his voice were genuine, and for now, that was enough. Kyle couldn’t help but grin. “I won’t. Don’t let the police run _you_ ragged.”

Kisame chuckled, and Kyle nodded to them both once more before turning for the door, but Kisame’s voice stopped him one last time.

“Kyle?” 

He turned back, curious. 

“I hope you find him someday, whoever’s right for you,” Kisame said.

Kyle stared at him for a minute, then gave up with a slightly pained laugh and nodded. “I thought I had…but maybe I’ll start looking again. I hope so too.”

With that, he left them. He was hurting, and would be for some time, but he had a good job to go back too, and that helped. 

_And who knows? Maybe I will meet someone, someday._

***

When Kyle had disappeared back into the brightly-lit lobby, Kisame stayed facing the door for a long moment, gathering…courage or strength, he wasn’t sure…before turning to face Itachi.

Itachi had turned around at some point during his exchange with Kyle, and now he met Kisame’s blue-grey eyes unflinchingly. 

The taller man’s breath caught at the depth of emotion he read in those onyx eyes. “Love, I-”

“I know,” Itachi said, deep voice barely more than a breath, catching a little at the endearment that Kisame hadn’t ever used before, “I understand.”

Kisame closed his eyes against the mixture of joyful laughter and tears that threatened, and silently held out a hand that Itachi accepted seconds later. 

They went back through the lobby to the elevator, touching only their hands. It was only moments before they were back in the privacy of their room, though it felt like much longer than that to Kisame. 

“I love you.” A quiet murmur from both of them around a kiss that had Kisame closer to drowning than he had ever been in the ocean. 

Those were the last words they exchanged that night. For what they shared now, no words could ever be necessary.

***

Kisame woke fairly early the next morning, somewhat to his own surprise. He had set no alarm, and it’s not as though they had gone to sleep early…

The thought and the memory were enough to finish waking him, and he opened his eyes slowly to find that Itachi had shifted out of his arms sometime during the night and was lying with his back to Kisame in the middle of the bed. 

The mere sight of his lover’s long dark hair, spread out over the pillow, was enough to have him aching again, even after making love more than once the night before. But Itachi was still sleeping, and Kisame didn’t want to wake him just yet…swallowing, he turned away. Sunlight seeped around the edges of the room’s curtains, and Kisame eased himself out of bed to open them a bit, letting a little of the golden light in so that he could see better. 

He stood in the bright rays for a moment, keeping his eyes closed against the light, before finally turning back to the bed. 

The early light caught the silky edges in Itachi’s hair, giving it shimmering highlights and contrasting it all the more with the smooth, pale skin of his naked back…

His breath catching in low moan, Kisame was easing himself back into the bed seconds later, forcing himself to move slowly, gently, even though he was aching more than ever now. Burying his face in the loose strands of dark hair on the pillow, he shifted to lie behind his lover, not quite touching, letting one hand run lightly down Itachi’s back to his waist, and then around to press lightly against his stomach, fingers stroking gently. 

_Mine,_ he thought, not fully coherent, just knowing that he never, ever wanted to let this man go.

“Nnn,” Itachi shifted a little, beginning to wake up but not quite there yet. Kisame couldn’t stop another soft moan, and pressed closer, letting the hand on Itachi’s stomach move lower while he threaded his free hand through more silky hair. 

“Itachi,” he breathed, low in his lover’s ear, swallowing hard when Itachi responded to his touches, arching against him. “I want you…” he nuzzled at the back of Itachi’s neck, just behind his ear and the other man shivered. _Want this…just this…_

“Ki…same…” Itachi shifted, turning his head a little, half-open black eyes still unfocused with sleep and growing desire. Kisame leaned forward to kiss him, running his hands over as much of his lover’s body as he could reach. Itachi moaned a little then, arching back against him and reaching to thread his fingers through Kisame’s, guiding him sleepily. Burying his face in Itachi’s hair again, letting the feel and smell of it overwhelm him, Kisame rocked against the other man at Itachi’s unspoken urging, building the sweet, hot ache up higher and higher…

_Until my dying day…_

Itachi gasped his name aloud, tensing under Kisame’s hands with his release, and at the sound and feel of his lover’s ecstasy, Kisame gave himself up to his own, his cry of Itachi’s name muffled against dark hair. 

They both lay, breath gradually slowing, still tangled together. 

“That,” Itachi murmured at last, shifting so that he could turn around in Kisame’s arms, tilting his head back for another kiss, “was a very pleasant way to wake up.”

“Good,” Kisame replied, granting the requested kiss and smiling happily. “It’s early, I know, but I couldn’t…”

“It’s all right,” Itachi said, tucking his head under Kisame’s chin and snuggling closer. 

Kisame lay there silently for a long moment, at a loss of what to say, but at last realized that “Thank you” probably suited best what was in his heart right now, and murmured it softly.

Itachi blinked at him, puzzled. “You are welcome. But, what for?”

“For you. For this morning. For last night. For everything,” Kisame explained, his words sounding helpless and jumbled in his own ears.

But Itachi simply nodded, dark eyes calm with love and understanding, and Kisame knew abruptly that they would never doubt each other again. 

They lay in bed and dozed for awhile before rising and showering together. They didn’t fly home until the next evening, and Kisame was hoping to go do some proper sightseeing today, a plan to which Itachi had agreed, promising to show his Florida-born-and-raised lover around the busy city. 

_This has been quite a week,_ Kisame thought, not entirely rueful, as they headed out into the morning sun. _Not quite what I was expecting, but the conference was good, and I’m glad I got to see Kyle again. And that we got everything cleared up for good. He’ll be happier in the end, I think._

He let his gaze drift to Itachi, who was waiting patiently a few paces ahead of him, looking back calmly, a smile hovering in his dark eyes. 

_And now Itachi is mine, for certain and for always, and that’s the best thing of all._

***

_4 years later…_

Depositing his suitcase near the wall, Kisame stretched and looked back at Itachi, who had shut the hotel room door behind them and was doing the same. “Shall we get changed and go get dinner?”

Itachi nodded, already unzipping his luggage.

They were back in New York for the chemistry conference. _I might be getting a little better about these things,_ Kisame decided. _It’s only been four years since I was last here instead of…over ten._ He sighed, shaking his head at himself in wry amusement and waving off his lover’s questioning glance. 

They left the hotel for dinner, and came back to find the hotel lobby packed with the first crowd of the conference. The opening lecture wasn’t for another hour or so, but people came early to get good seats and catch up with old acquaintances.

 _Speaking of which…_ Kisame glanced down at his lover, gesturing towards a familiar head of unruly red hair. “Mind if I go say hi to Kyle?”

Itachi shook his head and followed Kisame through the crowd. The blue-haired man was glad that Itachi had forgiven Kyle the misunderstandings of their first meeting. Not that Kisame had been in touch with him since then; he had decided to give his former lover some time to deal with the final conclusion of their break-up, but was hoping that by now Kyle might be ready to pick up their friendship again on steadier ground. 

“Kyle!” He called out over the noise of the crowd as they drew near, and was encouraged when Kyle turned around and gave him a surprised, welcoming smile.

“Kisame! You actually got back to another one within five years?” His smile didn’t even hint at changing upon seeing Itachi, he merely nodded his head in greeting. “Mr. Aoru. How are you?”

“I am well, Mr. Bannock, thank you,” Itachi replied politely, inclining his head in return greeting. 

“Yeah, I though I’d try and be a bit better about coming,” Kisame answered his friend’s initial teasing question, grinning. “Plus, Itachi had some business stuff to take care of in the city.”

“That’s cool. How’ve you been?”

“Pretty good. Yourself?”

“I’ve been good,” Kyle replied easily, but after a glance over Kisame’s left shoulder, something in his eyes shifted and he went on, voice quieter, “well…better than good, actually.” He looked back at Kisame with a very wry grin. “And you might as well get the ‘I told you so’ out of the way now.”

“What for-” Kisame started, but cut himself off in sudden astonishment and understanding when a young man came to stand at Kyle’s side, resting a hand on the red-head’s shoulder.

“Kisame, Mr. Aoru, this is Jake Stanford,” Kyle introduced, an oddly mixed undertone of pride and almost-shyness in his voice. “Jake, this is Kisame Hoshigaki and Itachi Aoru.”

Emerald green eyes, filled with a deep sense of what Kisame could only call “serenity,” examined them both with interest. After a long moment of careful study, Jake Stanford smiled slightly, approving. “I’m pleased to meet you,” he said in a low tenor voice, his words slow and deliberate. He shook hands with that same air of measured purpose, his grip firm. 

“Good to meet you too, Mr. Stanford,” Kisame replied honestly, and Itachi nodded, face still carefully blank but his dark eyes were curious. 

Jake’s face wasn’t much more expressive than Itachi’s, at first glance, though in his case it wasn’t a blankness of emotion so much as an overflow of that impressive calm he seemed to have towards…well, everything, as far as Kisame could tell. His eyes were bright and laughing, though, as he shook his head. “You may call me Jake,” he explained. “How do you wish to be addressed?”

“Kisame is fine,” replied the blue-haired man easily, quirking a questioning eyebrow at his lover.

“Hmm,” Itachi said, eyeing the boy even more sharply than before. “You are a chemist, I assume?”

“Yes,” Jake answered, some undertone of his voice making this an unshakeable fact. “I have been interested in it ever since high school. I have now been teaching with Kyle for two and a half years.” The undertones of possessiveness that accompanied Kyle’s name, in spite of the continued polite, even tone of Jake’s voice, were particularly interesting. 

_Clearly, I’ve been around Itachi too long, if I can pick up on all this having only met the kid five minutes ago,_ Kisame thought wryly. He had long supposed his lover to be the master in subtler-than-verbal forms of communication, though it seemed that that assumption might have to be adjusted somewhat. 

And Itachi appeared to be enjoying every second of it. “I see.” They watched each other closely for a long moment, green eyes and black, and it was clear to Kisame that some sort of communication was going on here, though he couldn’t for the life of him tell what. 

“Would you care for a cup of tea, Mr. Stanford?” Itachi offered quietly a moment later, a smirk now hovering around the corners of his eyes; it matched the humor Kisame supposed he could catch in Jake’s quiet, “I would like that very much, Mr. Aoru.” 

Apparently they had come to an understanding about something. With quick, nearly identical glances at their respective lovers, the two men slipped away through the crowd in the direction of the café. 

Kisame and Kyle looked at the two men, and then looked at each other, and then back again. 

“Do you have any idea what just happened?” Kyle asked a moment later, a bit plaintively.

“No,” Kisame answered bluntly, “but they’re getting along, so it should be fine.”

Kyle sighed and shook his head. “Want something to drink?”

“Yes.”

They headed for the bar, and were soon settled in with a beer each. 

“So, how did you meet him?” Kisame asked, curious, after a few minute’s comfortable silence. 

“Well, he was one of my students at the high school some years ago-” Seeing Kisame’s eyebrows shoot up, Kyle stopped and shook his head. “Don’t worry, it was nothing like that. At the time, he was just one of my more brilliant students. He’s extremely smart, but had been drifting a little, I think, for lack of anything that really caught his interest. He found that interest finally, in my class,” Kyle’s voice was not without pride, and Kisame thought it well-earned. “After that, he really blossomed, both in chemistry and in all his other subjects, and then went on to major in chemistry in college, which he finished in…two and a half years, I think? Less time than usual, I know. He’d gotten his teaching degree during his summers, having decided that he wanted to teach too, and when he discovered that there was an opening for a second chem teacher at our school, he came back.

“That’s when something more happened between us. He joined me the January after you and I last met here, actually, and then starting that summer we really got to be good friends; just hanging out, you know? And after awhile I realized that I…well, he’s very determined, and when he wants something, he won’t let up until he’s gotten it. And he wanted me.” 

Kyle’s voice dropped again, quiet enough that it almost hid the amazement in his voice. 

Kisame said, “I told you so,” grinning unrepentantly at Kyle’s grimace. “But really, Kyle, I’m surprised at you; you’ve never been one to suffer from self-esteem issues; you’re smart and handsome and good at a subject he enjoys. Why the surprise?”

“I don’t know,” Kyle admitted after a long moment of staring thoughtfully down at his drink. “I guess…he’s just so…so him, so brilliant and…and everything. He could have had so many other people, someone his own age…and he wanted me. Maybe I’m just grateful,” and here he shot Kisame a wry grin. “But I think I understand how you feel now. To have someone that you wouldn’t give up for anything.”

Kisame nodded, smiling fondly at his own memories. “I’m glad for you, Kyle.”

“Thanks,” Kyle said softly, then raised his glass with a brighter grin. “For good friends and good lovers and good jobs?”

“I’ll drink to that,” Kisame replied, returning the grin, and they drank.

A glance at his watch told him that time had flown. “Man, if we don’t hurry we’re going to be late for the opening lecture. Shall we go grab Jake?” Kyle agreed and they hurried over to the café to find Jake listening intently to whatever Itachi was explaining quietly to him.

Kisame took a moment to examine the young man as they approached. In his mid-twenties, most likely, Jake had brown skin, neatly spiked brown hair and a strong, white smile, all of which served to emphasize the vibrant green of his eyes. Deciding that the younger man’s calm was probably good for Kyle, Kisame’s initial approval of him was reinforced, and he was interested to hear if Jake had been doing any research outside of his normal teaching.

“We’re not moving to Florida,” Kyle said as they got nearer, apparently having deduced that Itachi was making a business proposition. 

“No, we’re not,” Jake agreed, standing to greet his lover. “Mr. Aoru was just wondering if I’d be interested in some long-distance consulting. I am.” 

Itachi, who had also risen and come to stand next to Kisame, kept a satisfied smile to himself and nodded to Jake. “I am pleased to hear it, Mr. Stanford. I am sure we will have further opportunities to talk later in the week. However, at the moment I believe you have your lecture to attend.”

“Yes,” Jake returned the not-quite smile and hesitated only a brief second before bowing correctly to Itachi in the traditional Japanese style. Itachi, startled, looked pleased and returned the bow, breaking down enough to give both Jake and Kyle a proper smile. 

“Well, we’d best be off,” Kisame said, covering his amusement. Itachi looked quite different when he smiled openly, as Kyle and Jake had just discovered, and to be shown that face was an honor indeed, which both men seemed to realize. “I’ll see you upstairs later?” he asked Itachi, who turned the smile on him and nodded. 

“I have my book.”

“Good,” Kisame said, smiling back (how could he not?). “How about we all do lunch together tomorrow?”

Nods from the other three, and Kisame led the way to the conference room with a light heart. _I never expected this to turn out so well for all of us, but it really has. Friends and lovers, for all of us._

And so it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Please remember that this was written in 2006. And that I have experience with academic conferences in general, but not those related to chemistry, so pardon the bs-ing.)
> 
> (Also note that I have never managed to write a version of Kisame that doesn't have a Thing for Itachi's hair. XD)


End file.
